Tradition and history — not medical advice
Pumsavana (puṃsavana): what the Gṛhyasūtras say
Pumsavana (puṃsavana) is one of the sixteen classical saṃskāras. This page gives its history only, from Śāṅkhāyana Gṛhyasūtra, Āśvalāyana Gṛhyasūtra, Pāraskara Gṛhyasūtra, Gobhila Gṛhyasūtra, Khādira Gṛhyasūtra, Hiraṇyakeśi Gṛhyasūtra and Āpastamba Gṛhyasūtra; it names the rite without describing a method, timing or sign.
Sex selection and pre-natal sex determination are prohibited in India under the PCPNDT Act, 1994. The site gives no method or sign to influence or predict a baby's sex. The Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (Prohibition of Sex Selection) Act, 1994
| Oldenberg SBE 30 synopsis (S. I, 20; Â. I, 13; P. I, 14; G. II, 6; Kh. II, 2, 17 seq.; H. II, 2; Âp. 14, 9 seq.) | The Pumsavana (i.e. the ceremony to secure the birth of a male child). |
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What the texts describe
Śāṅkhāyana Gṛhyasūtra — ŚāṅkhGS 1.20
No public-domain English translation available.
Āśvalāyana Gṛhyasūtra — ĀśvGS 1.13.2–7
No public-domain English translation available.
Pāraskara Gṛhyasūtra — PārGS 1.14
No public-domain English translation available.
Gobhila Gṛhyasūtra — GobhGS 2.6
No public-domain English translation available.
Khādira Gṛhyasūtra — KhādGS 2.2.17–23
No public-domain English translation available.
Hiraṇyakeśi Gṛhyasūtra — HirGS 2.2.1–7
No public-domain English translation available.
Āpastamba Gṛhyasūtra — ĀpGS 14.9–12
No public-domain English translation available.
Sanskrit: Oliver Hellwig, Digital Corpus of Sanskrit (DCS), 2010–2021, licensed CC BY 4.0. English: Hermann Oldenberg (trans.), The Grihya-Sutras, Sacred Books of the East 29/30 (1886/1892), public domain, except where marked otherwise.